April 30, 2008
Reflections on the Olympics from Princeton's Own Gold Medalist
Lesley Bush
Science Teacher, Grover Middle School, Princeton Junction
Minutes of the 30th Meeting of the 66th Year
President Joe Giordmaine called the meeting of the Old Guard of Princeton to order; this being the 30th meeting of the 66th year.
The invocation was led by George Hansen. Last week’s minutes were read by Juliana McIntyre.
Guests: Harvey Rothberg’s guest: Owen Leach; Nat Hartshorne: wife Valerie; John Lasley: wife Kay.
“Reflections on the Olympics from Princeton’s own Gold Medalist”
Jim Harford: Correctly noted, while introducing Lesley Bush, that she was as "svelte" today as she must have been when she won her gold medal for diving in the 1964 Olympics 44 years ago.
Leslie was kind enough to absent herself from her current role teaching science to the grade school students in the Grover Middle School in West Windsor, to be with us this morning. She remarked that she loved her work and was quick to add, "When my talk is over, I have to hurry back to my class." This brought out a few chuckles among the Old Guardians in the audience.
She began her talk noting that,"I don't think Princeton ever had a parade for an Olympic
champion. The town should do so anyway. Even though I'm just a jock, I still feel native Princeton medalwinners deserve special recognition."
Lesley carried a large and interesting collection of memorabilia to her lecture. One photo showed Lesley standing between two very tall gold medal winners: Bill Bradley (basketball) on her right, and Jed Graff, (swimmer) on her left. Also in the picture was Dr. McPhee, team physician and another gentleman, evidently an official at the games. "Standing between the two giants, Bradley and Graff, made me look like a dwarf, causing me to look smaller than I really am!" There were many newspaper clippings, telegrams, the colorful ribbon that once held her medal, and the medal it self, now suspended by gold chain which was passed around for all to see. It was a surprise to hear say the engravings on the medal have remained the same over the years of the Olympics.
Lesley's story and diving career had its beginning in Mountainside, New Jersey, while diving from a float in a nearby lake at the age of nine years. It was soon apparent that she loved diving and greatly desired to take diving lessons. Her father agreed to support her effort which, in turn, greatly changed the whole family's routine: different coaches, different dives, and different locations.
One theme Lesley often repeated during most of her early diving career was, "Good things kept happening, and I had no dream of being an Olympic champion." One of her earliest diving coaches was Mickey Vogt, well known throughout New Jersey. The Newark A.C. was a good site to begin her training, (parenthetically our N.A. swim team trained there as well.) Mickey was an excellent person, patient and kind, an ideal mentor for Lesley at this time. He was the beginning of a series of apparently predestined coaches she was to meet during her diving journey. Lesley smiled as she remarked, "Good things just happened." One of her next coaches was in Arizona, and while there, she earned a 50th place! With a grin she remarked, "No one said after that performance I have the markings of an Olympic champion."
Upon returning to Princeton, Bob Clotworthy and Bob Snyder, diving coaches at the University, each contributed further to her progress.
Eventually she spent a summer at the University of Indiana, where, by good fortune again, her coach was Hobie Billingsley, touted by many, ''The greatest coach that ever walked the pool deck." She soon became hooked on platform diving. "I learned seven dives in three days---quite a feat!" That summer, it was a difficult commute: The coach allotted her three days a week. It entailed a drive of one and one half hours each way. Besides learning new dives from the platform, she also realized that diving from a platform, it would be wise to put her hands together before entering the water.
When she arrived back to Princeton she was allowed to use the high board at the University's Dillon pool; but there were restrictions. She was to wait until the men swimmers had finished, and the "coast was clear," as suits were never worn during swim practice, that no longer being the case. One time, at the Community Park pool while focusing upon her diving techniques in mid-air, "with my toes neatly pointed, I forgot that the diving well was shallow; this resulted in several broken toes."
She continued to improve in her teen years, and quite unbelievably earned a place on the U.S. Olympic Team being held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. The competition was keen between Lesley and a former Olympic champion. During her final series of dives, Lesley said she would not be distracted by the importance of the event, but would totally concentrate on doing "a very good dive." At the end, she won the gold medal by a tiny margin of points. Having just turned 17 years old, she astounded the sporting world and was acclaimed by TV, The New York Times, Time, letters, telegrams and reporters. For a short time she basked in her good fortune, enjoying every moment, but circumstances made it impossible for her to remain for the closing ceremony and she regretfully flew back to Princeton.
Upon arriving back home, her mother remarked how well she had done and noted that
"Everybody is out of school for "Lesley Bush Day."
To explain her gold medal to those around her, she said once again, "It wasn't supposed to happen; it just did!" She subsequently went on to win in the Pan American Games and other national events.
While performing a swan dive in the 1968 Olympics, she remarked that: "I bent my knee." This resulted with an unsuccessful attempt to win a second gold medal. With a smile, she recounted that whenever her proud father greeted a friend at the front door, he would say, "Would you like to see my daughter's Olympic medal?"
At the conclusion of her talk, Lesley placed the medal, with its attached chain, around the neck of our smiling Old Guard President, Joe Giordmaine, a fitting gesture for an inspiring lecture.
Respectfully submitted,
Bill Haynes
The invocation was led by George Hansen. Last week’s minutes were read by Juliana McIntyre.
Guests: Harvey Rothberg’s guest: Owen Leach; Nat Hartshorne: wife Valerie; John Lasley: wife Kay.
“Reflections on the Olympics from Princeton’s own Gold Medalist”
Jim Harford: Correctly noted, while introducing Lesley Bush, that she was as "svelte" today as she must have been when she won her gold medal for diving in the 1964 Olympics 44 years ago.
Leslie was kind enough to absent herself from her current role teaching science to the grade school students in the Grover Middle School in West Windsor, to be with us this morning. She remarked that she loved her work and was quick to add, "When my talk is over, I have to hurry back to my class." This brought out a few chuckles among the Old Guardians in the audience.
She began her talk noting that,"I don't think Princeton ever had a parade for an Olympic
champion. The town should do so anyway. Even though I'm just a jock, I still feel native Princeton medalwinners deserve special recognition."
Lesley carried a large and interesting collection of memorabilia to her lecture. One photo showed Lesley standing between two very tall gold medal winners: Bill Bradley (basketball) on her right, and Jed Graff, (swimmer) on her left. Also in the picture was Dr. McPhee, team physician and another gentleman, evidently an official at the games. "Standing between the two giants, Bradley and Graff, made me look like a dwarf, causing me to look smaller than I really am!" There were many newspaper clippings, telegrams, the colorful ribbon that once held her medal, and the medal it self, now suspended by gold chain which was passed around for all to see. It was a surprise to hear say the engravings on the medal have remained the same over the years of the Olympics.
Lesley's story and diving career had its beginning in Mountainside, New Jersey, while diving from a float in a nearby lake at the age of nine years. It was soon apparent that she loved diving and greatly desired to take diving lessons. Her father agreed to support her effort which, in turn, greatly changed the whole family's routine: different coaches, different dives, and different locations.
One theme Lesley often repeated during most of her early diving career was, "Good things kept happening, and I had no dream of being an Olympic champion." One of her earliest diving coaches was Mickey Vogt, well known throughout New Jersey. The Newark A.C. was a good site to begin her training, (parenthetically our N.A. swim team trained there as well.) Mickey was an excellent person, patient and kind, an ideal mentor for Lesley at this time. He was the beginning of a series of apparently predestined coaches she was to meet during her diving journey. Lesley smiled as she remarked, "Good things just happened." One of her next coaches was in Arizona, and while there, she earned a 50th place! With a grin she remarked, "No one said after that performance I have the markings of an Olympic champion."
Upon returning to Princeton, Bob Clotworthy and Bob Snyder, diving coaches at the University, each contributed further to her progress.
Eventually she spent a summer at the University of Indiana, where, by good fortune again, her coach was Hobie Billingsley, touted by many, ''The greatest coach that ever walked the pool deck." She soon became hooked on platform diving. "I learned seven dives in three days---quite a feat!" That summer, it was a difficult commute: The coach allotted her three days a week. It entailed a drive of one and one half hours each way. Besides learning new dives from the platform, she also realized that diving from a platform, it would be wise to put her hands together before entering the water.
When she arrived back to Princeton she was allowed to use the high board at the University's Dillon pool; but there were restrictions. She was to wait until the men swimmers had finished, and the "coast was clear," as suits were never worn during swim practice, that no longer being the case. One time, at the Community Park pool while focusing upon her diving techniques in mid-air, "with my toes neatly pointed, I forgot that the diving well was shallow; this resulted in several broken toes."
She continued to improve in her teen years, and quite unbelievably earned a place on the U.S. Olympic Team being held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. The competition was keen between Lesley and a former Olympic champion. During her final series of dives, Lesley said she would not be distracted by the importance of the event, but would totally concentrate on doing "a very good dive." At the end, she won the gold medal by a tiny margin of points. Having just turned 17 years old, she astounded the sporting world and was acclaimed by TV, The New York Times, Time, letters, telegrams and reporters. For a short time she basked in her good fortune, enjoying every moment, but circumstances made it impossible for her to remain for the closing ceremony and she regretfully flew back to Princeton.
Upon arriving back home, her mother remarked how well she had done and noted that
"Everybody is out of school for "Lesley Bush Day."
To explain her gold medal to those around her, she said once again, "It wasn't supposed to happen; it just did!" She subsequently went on to win in the Pan American Games and other national events.
While performing a swan dive in the 1968 Olympics, she remarked that: "I bent my knee." This resulted with an unsuccessful attempt to win a second gold medal. With a smile, she recounted that whenever her proud father greeted a friend at the front door, he would say, "Would you like to see my daughter's Olympic medal?"
At the conclusion of her talk, Lesley placed the medal, with its attached chain, around the neck of our smiling Old Guard President, Joe Giordmaine, a fitting gesture for an inspiring lecture.
Respectfully submitted,
Bill Haynes